Sunday, August 1, 2010

HBin5 Four-Leaf Clover Broccoli and Cheddar Buns

It's that time again! Time to play with bread and challenge ourselves to try, or think up, new exciting things. I really looked forward to this HBin5 assignment. Not that I don't enjoy them all, but I love broccoli. And cheese in bread is just one of those naturally yummy combinations.

The other half of the assignment I was not able to accomplish. We were suppose to make Mesquite Bread. How delish does that sound? But I could not find Mesquite Flour at any of the local markets. I really do not want to buy it online and have to pay for shipping. Oh wait...hmmm....I realized that I didn't check the Hollywood Farmers Market. Well, if I find some there, I will report back because I sure would like to try this out. I mean......check out some of these ingredients: Mesquite Flour, Mesa, Jalapeno Peppers, Cilantro...ya, this baby is right up my alley. I can just see myself making pitas out of the dough and stuffing 'em with all sorts of fajita goodies.

A couple of weekends ago I grilled focaccia to be made with a Moroccan Grilled Chicken Sandwich. I'm not by any means experienced with grilling. Sir Sportsalot was away and I was left to my own means. This resulted in a very low heated charcoal bbq. The focaccia took at least twice as long to cook, although in the end, the results were wonderful. Last weekend I decided I wanted to try it again, only I wanted to use the Broccoli and Cheddar dough. Sir Sportsalot fired up those coals and had the thing blazing hot within 15 minutes. I dutifully place my roasting pan upside down on the grates and placed my baking sheet on top with my focaccia.

Let me make a little side note here. The reason for using the roasting pan is to raise the dough up a little to prevent burning. The reason I place the roasting pan upside down is to prevent the heat building up inside, causing a mini explosion and having the baking sheet and dough fly into the air. That would be a bummer.

Anyways....my broccoli and cheddar focaccia was a fail. The grill was too hot. The bread cooked too quickly on the outside, which stunted the "oven spring", and the inside was doughy. I tried to "save" it by sticking it in the oven...which helped with the insides but it was still very flat.

One of these days I'll figure it out. It will be worth it because the smoky flavor that the bread picks up is just wonderful.

I'm going to back up a little and tell you what I did with this dough. I used only all purpose flour. I have found that when working with "flavors" the whole wheat and even the white whole wheat tends to overpower just about any flavor that is added. Well, except for beets. Which I don't even like. Anyways.... I also doubled up on the cheese and then added some sauteed diced onions.

Before adding the broccoli to the dough, it is cooked and pureed, giving the dough a wonderful color. I was just thinking how nice it would be to us asparagus or even zucchini as well, or instead of the broccoli. This puree method really opens up a whole lot of possibilities.

After the initial rest period, I put the dough in the fridge. It is a lot easier to work with once it has chilled. The dough was then formed into a ball and divided into 4 equal portions, about the size of a plum. Each plum portion was then cut into fourths. Those were then formed into little balls. Four balls were placed into a muffin tin and allowed to rest, covered, for about 40 minutes.

I do not have pictures of this process because....well, I couldn't find the camera.

I then topped each "cluster" with some shredded cheese and baked them in a preheated 450' F oven for about 20 - 25 minutes, until they were browned and firm.

They came out beautifully. Light and flaky on the inside with a mild broccoli flavor, and bursting with cheddar both on the initial bite and then throughout the whole bun.

Michelle from BigBlackDogs.net is our HBin5 Bread Braid Host / Leader. Pop on over to her place and not only will you see her versions of Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day, but you will also find links to the other members experiences.

Hopefully I'll be able to find some Mesquite Flour soon so I can complete that portion of this weeks assignment.

9 comments:

Hello I'm Peter from Casa de Mesquite(formerly Casa de Fruta). If you send me your address I will send you a sample. I hate to see a nice person without her mesquite flour. I can also help your local health food store get set up if they would like to carry it so you dont have to order it on line

Your rolls look wonderful! I hadn't made this one yet as I hadn't had time and frankly I was worried about the taste with the veggies in it after the beet bread which was yuck in my book.

But your comment about swapping out the zucchini has given me pause. I have 2 on my counter right now that I need to use up. I've made so much quick zucchini bread over the years but hadn't found a recipe I liked for using it in regular bread...think I will do that.

Conversely it would work with some fruit purees as well I bet...hmmm peaches on the counter as well as nectarines..Fabulous experiment time coming up ALL THANKS TO YOU!

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